"They said no, didn't they?" asked Mr. Black.

Charlotte returned home and found her father sitting at a desk in his workshop. His shaggy auburn hair was messier than usual. Charlotte's eyes lowered to a squint as she fumed from her nose. Her father chuckled and slid his glass of wine toward her.

"Don't feel bad," his eyes went back to the book in front of him. "They never let women become Captains."

Charlotte took a seat across from her father, her eyes darted over all the books he had laid across the desk. "I thought my fight with Blackbeard would've earned me some respect."

"It wasn't a fight," said Mr. Black, he looked at her over his moon glasses. "You punched him and zipped off the way you always do. Don't look at me like that! I'm not saying you lack bravery. I'm just saying, let's keep things in perspective. Maybe they said no because of...well you know, your preferences."

She had told him a few months ago. The truth had traveled throughout Port Ruby, but his passiveness still annoyed her.

"You can say I like girls," she shook her head and took a sip of wine. "You don't have to be weird about it. Besides, even if I laid with the Chancellor I'd have gotten the same result."

"Sorry, it's just...I'm still getting used to it that's all," he gave her a kind smile and placed his hand over hers. "You're right though. I don't know what's going on with those pricks in Darkonia. The Emperor just feels men are better suited for the seas, I suppose."

"It's ignorant. I'm better than most of the fools they let sail," she took another sip and passed the glass back. "Some of them are even committing piracy in secret, you know it's true."

"I do," he nodded and poured himself more wine. "To be honest I don't trust most Captains out there, but this isn't about them. You're an agitator, Charlotte. You want to change how this world sees you, and I love you for that. The problem is you don't work well with others."

As much as she hated to admit it, she knew her father had been truthful. She was never one to be in a group, her trust wasn't there. She wasn't opposed to others because she wanted to be, she just never saw the good in anyone. Since the pirates had begun to wreck havoc, trust became a rare commodity in the Red Sea.

None of the them could be trusted. Everyone wanted something from her. Her wits...her diamonds...her Secreto. They wanted everything but her friendship...no one ever asked for that...and perhaps no one ever would.

"What are you doing here anyway?" she asked, desperate to forget the Chancellor's rejection.

"Research," he banged on his books as if they were drums. "The cadets came knocking earlier, they passed everyone on the island one of these."

He handed her a flyer pinned underneath one of the books. Missing Prince was written over the silhouette of a man, with a question mark over his face. However, it was the words underneath the picture that made her eyes widen, Reward 100,000G.

"A hundred thousand?" she let out a breathless chuckle. "That's crazy. I didn't even know the emperor was married."

"Me neither," he coughed after drinking a gulp of rum. "Damn that's strong...Anyway, they have word he's on one of the islands in the Red Sea. They found the nurse who took him as a child, she confessed under Truth's Tonic. They all thought the boy died at birth, seems like it was all a big conspiracy."

"And you think you're going to find him?" her eyes were low, and her lips curved toward the side of her face.

"The nurse has Demagia," his shoulders shrugged slightly. "She doesn't remember who she handed the baby off to. All we know is he was brought to the Red Sea. The prince can be anyone!"

"Maybe it's you," she said, with a sly smirk. "You were always too lazy to clean up after yourself. Sounds like the habit of a privileged royal to me."

"Yeah, I'm useless without your mother," he turned and smiled at a portrait of Mrs. Black by the front door. "She would've been proud of you for trying, you know? I don't want you to get discouraged. If you really want to be in a Caravan, you should try getting others to pledge with you."

A great tremor shook the table, as the plates in the kitchen flew off the racks and shattered across the floor. Charlotte and her father quickly rose from the desk and ran outside. Motorcars blocked the street in front of their home, the drivers stood out their vehicles and pointed toward the sky.

Her amber eyes shot up and the sight caused her to gasp. A massive war balloon was over One Blue, its cannons fired at townhouses below. The Jolly Roger on the war balloon was Blackbeard's, a detail that angered Charlotte even more.

"Blackbeard," Mr. Black yelped. "This is an Imperial island, has he lost his mind?"

Charlotte wondered the same. Pirates were dead men to the Darken Empire, these were islands where pirates came to die...why then would one come here?

"Find a place to hide," said Charlotte. "Away from the buildings, he's targeting them," she turned to her father and tossed him a key. "Unlock my boat by the dock, sail as far away from here as you can."

"Are you crazy?" Mr. Black shouted, the cannon fire had made it hard to hear. "You're coming with me!"

Charlotte opened her mouth to argue but felt someone bump her shoulder. She spun and saw a young woman sprinting toward Blackbeard's airship.

"Sarah, wait up!" said Cookie. She ran across the street and stopped an incoming motorcar with her bare hands. Her strength crushed the front of the motorcar, her tall shoulders simply shrugged. "I'm sorry."

Cookie continued after Sarah, the disgruntled driver left trapped inside his vehicle. Charlotte stood amazed at the power the redhead had shown. She blinked her way out of her thoughts and ran after the ladies down the street.

"Charlotte, come back!" Mr. Black's fear kept him paralyzed in front of the door.

"Just go to the boat," Charlotte shouted. "I'll be fine!"

She turned the corner and found the two ladies standing in the middle of the street. The war balloon was directly above them and began to bombard Town Square. Several citizens ran from the streets and into a brown cathedral nearby. The laughter of the pirates onboard echoed across the sky, their cannons pointed toward the cathedral.

Sarah bit into her other thumb nail and drank the last of her Merwater. One of the cannons fired and shot a red cannonball toward the cathedral. Sarah extended her hand toward the canals to her left, and a large jet of water shot out toward the sky. With a swipe of her hand, the water jet soared and smacked the cannonball back toward the airship.

The explosion knocked out one of the cannons, and sent it hurtling down toward the street. The pirates quickly took notice, they aimed another cannon at Sarah and fired. Cookie activated her Secreto and jumped in front of her Captain. She threw her arms together and caught the cannonball in her hands, the impact pushed the tall redhead several feet back.

She wobbled a bit and dropped the cannonball in front of her, the weight caused the street to crack beneath it. Cookie dropped to her knees, her lungs working hard to catch her breath. Charlotte watched Sarah run to her friend, her eyes wide with concern.

"Hey, are you alright?" asked Sarah, she put Cookie's arm around her neck and tried to lift her up.

"Aye aye, Captain!" Cookie let out a weak chuckle.

A loud boom echoed across the sky once more, the pirates fired another cannonball toward them. Sarah stood stunned, the cannonball was too close for them to dodge. Charlotte's eyes glowed as she teleported in front of them. She and Sarah locked eyes, both said nothing as she grabbed them both by the collar.

Charlotte teleported again and missed the cannonball by an inch. The attack shattered a section of the street, cobblestone bricks and a huge cloud of smoke hurtled into the air. She brought the ladies several meters away from the impact, her heart beating fast in her chest. Sarah looked down and felt her body, her panicked breath began to ease...she was almost sure that they'd been hit.

"You two alright?" asked Charlotte, her hand still pressed against her chest.

"Yeah," said Cookie. Her eyes gazed at the burning hole in front of her, and the cobblestone bricks that broke as they fell back toward the ground. "I'm just glad we weren't in the middle of that."

Charlotte then found Sarah's gaze again. The auburn hair, the glasses, the amber eyes...Sarah was sure she had seen her before.

"You're Charlotte Black, aren't you?" asked Sarah, her voice rife with excitement.

Charlotte scrunched her face and gave Sarah a suspicious look. "How do you know my name?"

Sarah opened her mouth to answer, but the sound of an explosion stopped her. They looked up and saw the airship flying further into Town Square.

"He's heading for the Chancellor," said Charlotte. "Come on, we can stop them if we fight together."

Blackbeard's war balloon continued to rain cannonballs down below. The large shadow from the airship slowly traveled through the streets, leaving a trail of fire and ruined buildings in its wake. The Imperial soldiers created a barricade in front of the town hall. Several men stood on the front steps and fired their rifles at the airship.

The pirates aimed all of their cannons and bombarded the Imperial resistance. Chunks of the stairs and sidewalks were blown into the air, men flew aside like rag dolls onto the streets. Several ropes were lowered from the main deck of the airship, and pirates came down firing pistols from the hip. The pirates all wore the same outfit, black leather armor and red bandanas with Blackbeard's Jolly Roger.

Charlotte, Sarah and Cookie arrived at the town hall just as the pirates landed. The airship did not proceed any further and was left hovering still. Blackbeard was the last pirate to set his black boots on the ground. His size shocked Sarah, he was much larger than she had remembered.

He was taller than Cookie, had large broad shoulders, and had the mass of three men. His black pirate hat looked like a triangular bowl, and underneath were a pair of menacing green eyes upon his scared face. His black beard was thick, unkempt, and near two lit fuses that stuck out on either side of his hat.

"Mr. Green," said Blackbeard, his voice deep and husky. "We have a few guests with us. Bring them to me, please."

A man in blonde locks stepped in front of Blackbeard's crew. He smiled and showed a few of his teeth were riddled with holes.

"Aye. Right away, sir." said Mr. Green.

His brown eyes began to glow, his dark scarred hand stretched out toward Charlotte. She and the others were pulled from their spot and left suspended in front of Blackbeard. They all tried to move their limbs, but Mr. Green's Secreto kept them trapped.

"What the hell is going on?" Sarah shouted, her arms shaking to break free. "That Secreto belongs to my friend."

"Mr. Williker is dead, little one," replied Blackbeard. "I killed everyone on that pathetic island. Mr. Green ate your friend's heart upon my command and gained his power. It was a gruesome thing to watch. I could feel each nail clawing into me as I ripped it out of his chest."

"Shut up!" Charlotte barked, Sarah's frightened face made her stomach turn. "She's heard enough from you, you sick freak."

"A freak am I?" Blackbeard's eyes grew cold. "You and I aren't so different, Ms. Black. Your love for women and my love for piracy, taboos to the Empire both. Everything we stand on was built with their hatred. I'm here to build a new world, a world where the different can be free."

Charlotte looked past Blackbeard and toward the destruction he had caused.  The crackles of the burning streets mixed with the screams of the people. The sight of it threw her into a rage.

"And this is how you're going to do it," Charlotte retorted. "By killing others?"

Blackbeard smirked and stood face to face with Charlotte, his voice much calmer. "If you think this is terrible, just wait till I bring war to your doorstep."

A muffled scream forced his green eyes away from her. Jayden arrived and pushed Mia into Blackbeard's crew. Her body struggled, her mouth was gagged, and her hands were bound with chains.

Sarah gaped at the sight of her former Captain, the weight of her heart seemed to numb her chest. "Jayden?"

He didn't look at her...he didn't look at anyone. Jayden was silent, his face emotionless, and his silver eyes stuck toward the blue sky.

"What are you doing with that girl?" asked Cookie, her eyes wide with fright.

"Ms. Rose has something I need very dearly," said Blackbeard. "Don't worry though, I try not to harm women when I can. Should the rose prove useful, I'll return with her petals intact. Heh. Alright you lot, let's get moving."

Mr. Green took Mia and grabbed onto one of the hanging ropes. One by one, the pirates were pulled back up to Blackbeard's airship. The notorious captain patted Jayden on the back, and started to walk toward one of the ropes.

"Jayden!" Sarah shouted. She tried to move her limbs but to no avail, she and the others were still stuck in the air. She watched helplessly as Jayden walked toward one of the hanging ropes, her anger finally erupted in full force. "Look at me! I know you can hear me, Jayden! Is this what you're doing, working with the guy that killed Bonny's father? She was your friend! Jayden, look at me!"

Her words finally reached his ears, he turned his eyes toward her with his hand on the hanging rope. His face was so empty, he was nothing like the man she remembered.

"Why are you doing this?" her voice was more pleading than questioning.

Jayden's eyes shifted to floor and darted about for a moment. He then looked up at her with his eyebrows clenched. "Because I want to."

Blackbeard and Jayden were both pulled up toward the airship. Sarah's eyes followed them till they became fading dots in the air. The war balloon turned about and started a straight course for the sea. The effects of Mr. Green's Secreto began to fade as the ship got further away. Charlotte wiggled her fingers at first, and then felt movement in her toes.

Finally they were released, and the ladies fell hard onto the cobblestone. They rose together on their knees, and watched Blackbeard's airship fly over the wall that guarded Port Ruby. Sarah punched the cobblestone and watched her tears fall below. She wanted to fix things with Jayden...deep down inside of her, she wanted to find some way to forgive him. She knew at that moment that she had been foolish.

She didn't want to forgive Jayden...she wanted to kill him.